The Road Not Taken
by EA Thomas
Summary: They are about to realize...in the end...nothing else matters
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: Stargate is not mine and I will return it when I'm finished and all the characters will return to their boring lives where no one is getting any…work done!!!!

The Road Not Taken…

The tires squalled as Carter peeled out of the parking lot in her Camino and disappeared down the road.

"_Don't stop Samantha, don't look back." _There was the voice again—the same voice that made her realize what she was about to do.

She had zoned out by the second mile and her knuckles were turning white from her death grip on the steering wheel. The car picked up speed with every second that passed. She was pushing 50 then 60 and was soon flying at 85 miles an hour as she passed the gas station.

The first few seconds of this daring trip were met with hesitation, but now she was determined to do this—she needed to do this. Nothing was going to stop her, not the rain or those who would've stopped her if they had known.

Her foot was on the floor and the engine roared as she drove through a yellow light and two stop signs.

"_Don't stop Samantha—what ever you do don't stop!"_ The voice was screaming at her now—not letting her ignore it.

As she neared the on ramp to the highway she pulled the car off onto the shoulder and tried to catch her breath—fighting against the river of tears flowing from her eyes. She dried her eyes with the back of her hand and wiped the mixture of tears and mascara on her dress. She didn't even notice the stain it made on the white material.

"_You did the right thing, keep going, what ever you do just keep going and everything will be fine once you get there…you know you did the right thing Sam, pull yourself together!" _

She grabbed the steering wheel and forced herself to take a deep breath—then drove the car back onto the road and took the exit for Colorado Springs. She watched each sign as they passed overhead, trying anything to keep her doubts at bay. But it was no use—nothing could keep her from remembering how she got here, on this road, on this day…

NINE MONTHS AGO…

Carter sat in the cafeteria eating when Daniel approached and sat across from her.

"Hey." She said a little less exuberant than usual.

"How's everything going?"

"Oh you know… up to my ears in planning..." Carter said faking a smile.

"Well, that's expected. I spoke to Teal'c--said he wanted to get you some type of traditional gift…it sounded scary. So I told him to just get you a flower vase."

"That's Teal'c…" She said biting her sandwich.

"So _he_ hasn't said anything?"

"Not since he found out …he said he was happy for me but he sounded weird…like…I don't know…almost like…"

"He was lying?" He said taking a bite of his sandwich. A second later he realized what he'd just said and his eyes grew two sizes. "Was that out loud?" He asked with a mouth full.

"Yeah, it was…what did you mean by that?"

"Ohm… nothing, just thinking out loud again—it's a disease."

He didn't have to explain it; Sam got his full meaning when he said it the first time. She had just chosen to ignore it.

BACK IN THE CAR…

Carter tried to keep herself calm as the rain came down harder. Staring through the raindrops she remembered the day when she tried to tell Jack the news. She wanted to tell him face to face…but fate had intervened…

"You know?" She asked shocked that he was so cavalier in his response. "Who told you?" She continued as she followed Jack into the elevator.

"Oh come on Carter, you know this place…one person finds out and everyone knows…"

"I wanted to tell you personally…"

"It's fine… really…I'm happy for you…"

She knew it was a lie then, she didn't have to wait for Daniel to tell her.

The smile on his face was fake through and through--the corners of his mouth did that twitching thing when he lied. For a moment she wanted to call him on it and dig for the reasons…but as usual…she let it go.

BACK ON THE ROAD…

_"Stop thinking about that! It's not going to help you now! Just focus Sam, you have to remember why you are doing this." _The voice was clear and true, but the memories surfacing in her mind were stronger.

SIX MONTHS AGO…

She hadn't planned to leave the SGC or the Air Force. It was just a six--week vacation and she'd be back at work and back into the swing of things…everything would be back to normal…

"So… you're coming back…" Jack said unconvincingly as he walked into his office with Carter slowly following him.

"Well, Sir…that's actually why I came in today…I've been thinking about it and-"

"No."

"Sir?"

That's how it began. Five seconds later his office door slammed shut. She knew she had no right to say what she had said—it didn't matter if it was true…

"Look--I'm leaving. I'm already gone and if you think for one second that you are going to ever so slightly hint at what ever use to be between us and think that it's going to keep me here-- you've got another thing coming! I found someone who loves me. He says it every day! I am not going to throw it away because you want to keep me around on the off chance that you **_might_** be able to deal with what ever the hell it is you **_think_** you feel for me. I DO NOT CARE!"

After that she stormed out of the office—only stopping to grab her box of personal things from her lab and then she was back on the elevator. She punched the button and looked up. Jack was running at her full speed—He actually called out her name, but she let the doors close…that part of her life was over.

BACK IN THE CAR…

The tears were streaming down her face, mixing with her makeup and stinging her eyes. Her face was getting hot and her hair was falling out—but she pushed on.

The rain had slacked off into a heavy mist as Jack O'Neill sat behind the wheel in his truck staring at the window shield—just as he had been doing for the last six hours.

He knew he should have left a long time ago. He just couldn't bring himself to start the car. It took him forever just to get to the truck and force himself inside. He had to go back in the house for things he forgot…his tie was first, and then his phone and his watch… sunglasses…the gift… but once he was in the car it was all he could do to sit there and not take out his frustrations on the steering wheel.

"_You coward… you have no right to be doing this…"_ He chided himself through clinched teeth. He was sick and tired of this game and turned the key in the ignition. The engine roared to life. He couldn't put the truck in gear, couldn't move a muscle. It wasn't going to happen—he resigned himself to that much at least, but he still couldn't get out of the driveway. He reached for the keys and pulled them from the ignition. Submitting to defeat, he let his head rest on the back of his seat and closed his eyes. _"You Idiot…"_

MEANWHILE…

Daniel paused before turning the doorknob and shook hi head—this was not going to be easy. He walked in and saw Jacob Carter and Pete talking and laughing as they tried to fix their ties. The two men had finally come to a common ground and the Air Force General was tolerating the young man's existence in his daughter's life—for the moment. As Daniel walked toward them Jacob and Pete fell silent—he looked like he'd just been gut kicked.

"Danny, what's wrong?" Jacob asked laying his hand on his shoulder.

He avoided eye contact with Pete and stared at the floor—then looked over at Jacob. "Sam left." He said softly.

The color drained from Pete's face.

"She what?" He said, an awkward smile dancing across his lips--praying he had misunderstood.

"She left Pete." He looked at him now and saw what he had wanted to avoid—a man ripped apart.

"Where the hell did she go?!" He yelled. But he didn't wait for the answer. He ran from the room and through the church until he crashed through the front door. Her car was gone.

Daniel had expected Pete to take it like this—but Jacob was calm, as though he expected it. As the two men stood in silence, General Hammond walked in—Daniel saw it as an opportunity to exit.

"I'm going to go find Teal'c." Daniel said leaving the two men to an inevitable conversation.

"She's gone?" Jacob asked Hammond.

"About ten minutes now." Hammond said, his voice clear and steady.

"Did she say where she was headed?" He was already loosening his tie as he spoke.

"Do you really have to ask that?"

"No- I don't." He took off his coat and leaned against the windowsill as he rubbed the little hair he still had on his head.

"It was always going to end like this Jacob." He wanted to tell Jacob that he saw this coming—but then he would have to answer why he had never done anything about it.

Jacob knew he was right. A part of him knew that this was going to happen—just not today.

Carter had been driving for an hour now and her nerves were near their breaking point. Her exit was coming up…_almost there_…

Once she cleared the exit she was driving down the last stretch of road before she would turn off onto the dirt road. She had slowed to a snails pace now--fear was setting in. Her hands were shaking but she had managed to stop crying.

The last turn on the dirt road was the finals straw—and she found herself straightening in her seat as the house came into sight.

She drove pass the driveway--thank god the house was far enough back from the road that if she parked beyond the drive way that he wouldn't be able to see her.

Parking under the tree, she looked out across the front yard.

"_It's now or never kiddo." _She heard her mother's voice echoing. Now she knew she was doing the right thing

She got out of the car with a renewed sense of strength and headed for the front door then thought that he would be out back. She made a b-line for the back yard only to find it empty—and wet. Her feet were soaked from the wet grass. She looked down at her satin shoes and saw that the bottom of her dress was soiled form the mud—it would be ruined before this was over. She headed for the back door walked into the living room.

"Hello?" She called as her voice echoed in the empty house.

"_He's gone"_ she thought, _"All this, and he's not here."_

Her heart sank and she was about to run back to her car but she remembered the deck on the roof…

She climbed the stairs, ripping her dress along the way. He wasn't there either.

She sat alone a top the roof in an old fold up chair that she had brought up there the last time he had a cookout.

She felt the tears stinging her eyes once again and gave into the sobs as she leaned forward and let her head fall into her lap her hands falling to her side.

What was she going to do know? She'd never get to tell him the truth…

She was lost in her own thoughts and didn't hear the foots steps on the stairs behind her…

He walked softly trying not to make a sound and stopped beside the chair.

"Hey." He said softly.

She turned in the chair and was to her feet in a second.

They both meant to speak. They meant to say everything that was going through their minds… but all they could do was stand there…

He smiled in disbelief…was she really standing there in front of him or had be fallen asleep in his truck?

She tried smiled through the tears that were streaming down her cheeks but it only brought more tears.

He was the first to break the silence.

"You're here?" His voice was anything but steady as he tried to speak.

"Yeah, I know…" she pulled her hands together in front of her and started fidgeting. "I was just driving…and…"

"You wound up…here."

"Presumptuous?" Her forehead wrinkled on command.

"No." She still couldn't read his eyes. There was a mixture of emotion in them that churned like the ocean.

"Good."

The tension was building, almost forcing them a part now.

Jack took a few uncertain steps and put a few more inches between them. The intimacy of the situation was getting to be too much for the both of them.

He was struggling with his words and almost had to force them out. "It's good that you didn't…do it." he said shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Really?"

"You saved me the trouble… of …driving…I couldn't get out of the drive way…"

"Surprised?"

"Oh… you know…I'm about even right now…"

"Oh…"

"Did you… leave…because…" He was shifting his weight from one foot to another as he tried to hold himself together.

"Yeah…I did…"

"Wow—Really?" He had been looking down at the deck but his eyes snapped back to her when he realized what she had said.

"Yeah…"

"Wow…"

"I know…"

"So…you're here…" He was repeating himself but a part of him had to make sure.

"Uhhuh." She was fumbling too, she still couldn't think of anything to say that was over two words.

Silence fell between them again. Both of them had thought about this moment for as long as they could remember, but it was completely different when it came down to it. Years of denial and suppression couldn't be reversed in a second...or could it?

"Carter?" He whispered.

"Yes?"

"I don't know how to do this." He said suddenly motioning between them.

"Me either." She replied-- a little too quickly.

"Good." He said letting out a deep breath.

"I have an idea…"

"Lay it on me." He said feigning excitement.

"Call me Samantha." Her features softened now, the tears drying and her eyes were sparkling.

"_First step_ kinda thing huh?" He said, shifting his feet again as he ran his hand over his head.

"There's always _one_…"

"Yeah…well…uh…Samantha?"

"Yes?'

The words were right there on the tip of his tongue but still couldn't say them, not matter how much he wanted to…

He fought with his inability to speak and then decided to take another approach. "Ah hell." He crossed the space between them and pulled her in his arms.

She was startled at first, but relaxed in his arms as his lips melded with her own. He couldn't himself to break away from her but soon they both hovered mere inches from one another.

"I've never been good a those step by step programs…" He was breathing heavy now as he reached to brush her hair from her face.

"You always have had a way of seeing things more…simple…" she said smiling—this is what she had expected.

His fingertips traced her jaw line as he lifted her chin so she looked into his eyes.

"I love you." He said softly. "You know that right?"

"I always knew."


	2. chapter 2

The Road Not Taken…Chapter two…

She couldn't help but wake up before sunrise—too many years in the military and her body was use to the early morning hours.

Her body woke first, taking a deeper breath to liven her senses and get her heart pumping—but something was different. The scent in the air was different, there was no hum of the air conditioner and there was no aroma of fresh coffee being brewed from her automatic machine—which she set religiously.

She was about to sit up in bed when something or someone moved and suddenly there was a warm hand wrapping itself around he midsection and pulling her up against a warm body—and the softest traces of kisses were making their way down her neck and up to her ear—now she was awake. It all made sense in an instant and the scent of the sheets and the touch on her waist became very familiar…

"Jack…" the name seemed to roll off her tongue like velvet as she turned over in his arms. "Now that's a wakeup…" He was laying there beside her half covered by the sheets. His right arm under her head and his left draped across her abdomen as his fingers danced over her skin.

"Hi there." His hair was going in a million directions and she could've sworn that he was grinning at her through the sleepy look on his face.

"I think I like waking up like this…" she said letting her fingers play across his lips.

"Me too—" he said moving suddenly to pull her closer. "Tell me—why didn't we do this years ago?" The look on his face was priceless—he was actually kidding around.

"Gee I don't know—something about you being my commanding officer." She had met it as a joke but it struck a cord in him and he turned serious.

"That does bring up some things…" he said propping himself up on his arm.

"I'm sorry—I didn't mean to—"

"No, no we need to talk about this. We have to decide on a few things…"

"I know…" This is what she wasn't looking forward to—this is the hard part.

"I should make some phone calls—put myself on leave until we figure this out…" He said running through every angle he would have to cover at work to keep both of the out of trouble.

"Good idea." She felt the wall being put between them—only this time it was a different wall. She moved to the edge of the bed to get up but was quickly pulled back under the sheets and into jack's arms.

"Colonel Carter—I regret to inform you that as of this moment you are on administrative leave—see I think you've been working waaayy to hard here lately and along with everything that's been going on with your personal life I believe that you need to take it easy—"

"Oh really? You think I'm stressed out? So…what do you recommend…"

"Uhmm, at least two days—and I mean two full days of laying around in bed with a certain scruffy looking general who's kinda liking the idea of having you around when he wakes up…"

"Oh, that sounds like sound medical advice—are there any instructions that I should follow?"

"Ohh, I'm sure there's a few." A slow smile crept across his lips as he made his way to her collarbone and up her neck. "The first one—and this is the most important—you aren't allowed to wear any clothes for the first 24 hours."

"Oh…well—I don't think that'll be a problem."

By 2 o'clock that after noon they both managed to get up and stay out of the bedroom. Sam had thrown on an over sized shirt and pair of sweat pants that belong to Jack. As she moved about the kitchen making coffee—he couldn't keep his eyes off of her.

"What are you staring at?" She asked, knowing full well what he was looking at.

"That's a good look for you—you should wear my clothes more often."

Sam finished making the coffee as she smiled down at the counter.

"I have a phone call to make." She said becoming serious.

"I know you do—your dad—he's going to kill me isn't he?"

"I don't know if he'll **_kill_** you—but I still have some explaining to do."

"To Pete." The name drained the color from her face and in an instant changed Jack's light demeanor into his usual stoic gaze.

"Hey-" She saw the change in his eyes—she had seen it before but it wasn't until now that she realized what it was. She set the coffee grounds on the counter and walked over to him and rested her hands on his chest. "It's something I have to do—I owe them an explanation. And after I'm done telling them that I'm in love with you—I want to come back here…and be with you." She wasn't about to let things get weird between them. Slipping her arms around his shoulders she smiled as he pulled her closer.

"I think I can handle that—do you…want me to uh—come with you?"

"Oh god yes…but—I think it's something I should do alone."

"You're right…I'll go to the base and get the paper work started to put us on leave." It was like they were a normal couple planning their day—not planning a complete over throw of everything they had known for the last eight years.

Sam arrived at her house around 4 that afternoon. Her father's rent-a-car was parked out in front of the house—he was still at there. As she walked up the sidewalk to the front door, she felt like she was in trouble—like her father was going to be angry with her.

With the turn of the doorknob the door was opened form the other side—her father was now standing inches away from her. She couldn't speak for a moment—what could she say?

"Oh honey." The uncertain apprehension in his eyes melted away as he pulled her into his arms and held her. "Are you alright?" Hew asked as she dropped her purse to the floor and hugged him back.

"I'm okay Dad—I'm so sorry."

"What?" He asked pulling away to see her. "What do you have to be sorry for?"

"For running out—not saying anything."

"Sam, you followed your heart—that's what matters, all I've ever wanted is for you to be happy."

"Oh Dad…that's exactly what I needed to hear."

"Pete is a good man—but your heart is with Jack, marrying Pete would have been the worst mistake of your life."

"I have to talk to him."

"He's still at the hotel. He told me that he'd be in town until tomorrow—are you sure you want to talk to him—I could—"

"No Dad, thank you but I need to do this for myself."

"Alright—just remember, you didn't do anything wrong. Marrying him while you loved someone else—that would have been wrong."

This is what she needed to hear. She knew in her heart that she had done the right thing by running to Jack—but she need to hear her father say that she was right. "I'm going to change my clothes and head over to the hotel."

For the first time he noticed her attire and smiled as she walked back to her room. "That's a good look for you Sam!" He yelled down the hall.

"So I've been told!" She said before closing the door.


	3. Honey I'm Home

It was Sunday afternoon when Jack arrived at the base.

On the weekends, the base was operated with a skeleton crew—30 people max. But some how Jack had bumped into every one of them on his way to his office.

Closing the door behind him he sat behind the desk to gather his thoughts. What he was about to do—what his actions would lead to—what the last few days have led to. He couldn't believe that this was happening—he had her. He had gotten the girl after all.

He propped his elbows on the desk and leaned into his hands—_what a rush_…

He had to remind him self that this was a good thing—that what had happened was a good thing—and it was okay…

He reached down to the bottom drawer of his desk and pulled out two forms to process their leave requests. As he sat them on his desk—the door opened and Daniel walked in.

Daniel didn't say a word. He was still in his civilian clothes and hadn't slept very well by the looks of it. He sat in the chair across from Jack's desk and pulled it as close to the desk as he could and leaned forward just as Jack was on the opposite side—for a moment they had a staring match.

"Hello Daniel." Jack said, as though this behavior and this situation were completely normal.

"Jack…" He said drumming his fingers on the desk.

"Can I help you?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing…" He wanted to come right out and say it—to ask up front what had happened. If Sam had gone to his house like everyone had expected…and what happened when she got there.

"Dan-"

"Hey—I came so Jacob wouldn't come in here and beat your head in. So talk to me or deal with him…and I don't think you can take him—to be honest." He was pulling Jack's bluff, clearly—but Jack didn't know if he should believe him or not.

Without a word he held up the two leave requests as an explanation for Daniel.

"Leave requests?" He asked almost angry. "You're filling out leave requests? I thought you'd be filling out a different form…"

"Like what?"

"Like a resignation letter perhaps…" he said pushing the leave papers down on the table between them.

"This is temporary..." He picked the papers back up and tried to hold them up between him and Daniel.

"So she went to your house?" He confirmed, and the look on Jack's face was enough of an answer—he was satisfied and sat back down in the chair.

"Daniel—I'm not doing this—not here." He tried to avert his attention somewhere else and starting fidgeting with something else on his desk.

"Fine—then lets go get a beer." Daniel stood and walked for the door. Turning back, he realized that Jack wasn't following. "Come on Jack—you aren't getting out of this."

He gave in—after all, he needed to talk about it with someone…

Sam pulled up outside Pete's hotel room just after six p.m., and sat there for almost a half hour before she could make herself get out of the car.

Dressed in her most confident outfit—Jeans and a t-shirt—she walked to the door and knocked lightly three times and waited. Three seconds went by and nothing—she wanted to run back to the car and drive away—_I tried but woops he had left already…_

The door opened slowly and there was Pete standing before her. He didn't look mad as she expected—but she could see the hurt in his eyes as plain as day…all the sudden she felt sick and dizzy. All she wanted to do was run in the opposite direction.

"Hi." Pete was trying to keep his anger inside—he was trying to let her do whatever she came there to do. "Want to come in?" He surprised himself at how nice he was being—he hadn't started yelling yet.

"Pete, I-" She turned around and he was right there staring at her—the tears were instantaneous. "I'm so sorry…"

He reached out and touched her shoulder, then pulled her into his arms and she hugged him back.

"Sam…" he indulged himself for a moment and ran his fingers over her hair—then pulled back from her. "Sam—I don't hate you…if that's what you're thinking." He walked to the other side of the room and put the bed between them.

"I wanted to come and talk—explain to you…maybe I shouldn't have come here." She was about to run for the door.

"No—you should have come…there are things that need to be said."

"I don't know how many times I can say I'm sorry—I never meant to hurt you." She had managed to fight back the tears and was starting to think clearly again.

"I know—running out of that church must have been the hardest thing you've ever done." He was being honest—and he did know how difficult it had been for her. "But—hearing Daniel tell me that you were gone and seeing your car disappearing down the road…I wish you could've told me before you left."

"Pete—"

"Sam, let me talk—please…" She nodded and sat in a chair to listen—he did have a right to say his peace after all. "I love you more than anything in this world. And when you told me about the SGC and everything you do—about what's happened to you through the years and all the pain you've been through, I told myself that it was my responsibility to make sure that when I was with you that you were happy. I wanted to be the man that you needed, the man that showed you there was more to life than what you had seen—for a while I thought I could do it—but the day I met Jack, I knew this wouldn't work." Pete was still amazed at how calm he was being. A part of him wanted to lash out and scream and stomp his feet and ask her why she had done this…but the bigger part of him knew why this was happening and had seen it coming a mile away. "Remember that night I met Jack? We were celebrating your birthday at O'Malley's…you spilled something on you shirt and had to go to the bathroom. Daniel and Teal'c went to the bar and left me and Jack alone at the table—I knew they did it on purpose…He tried to make it sound like a 'don't hurt my daughter speech'—but it was more than that. I knew right then that he loved you—I just thought it was this unrequited thing…a military thing that happens when you work as close as you guys have been the last eight years…but the longer we were together the more I realized you were settling for me—and you wanted him."

"Pete…please—I."

"I don't blame you Sam—I would've married you—but it would have been wrong. We both know that now."

The tension had finally broken in Sam's heart—Pete had said what she came to say and said it better than she would have.

"Pete—you're a good man." She walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. "I'm going to go…"

She opened the door to leave and as she walked to her car he stood in the doorway—saying goodbye for the last time.

Daniel had been drinking Ginger ale for the last hour—so had Jack. Neither one of them had said anything beyond small talk—Jack just didn't know how to talk about this.

"She left him for me…" He was hunching over his drink, looking down at the bar. "She ran right to me…just like I wanted her to."

"Ok…this is a start…what happened then."

"I'm not telling you everything Daniel!" He was animated now—and glaring at Daniel as though knives could fly from his eyes.

"OK—how did it end this morning?"

"I went to the base to write up our leave papers…she went to talk to Pete."

"You let her go see him!?"

"I didn't LET her do ANYTHING—"

"But you've been telling her what to do for eight years!!! What changed?!"

Jack leaned back against the bar again and looked down at his ginger ale.

"I've never met a woman that drove me to drink…ginger ale."

Daniel understood now—he understood it all… "Are you worried that she won't come back?" Has was asking the one question that was lingering in the back of Jack's mind—that Sam would get there and Pete would win her back.

"I thought about it."

"You really think she isn't coming back?"

"I don't want to think about it."

"Ok—another question—why leave papers…why not resignation papers?"

"We haven't—"

"Talked about it—I know. But you know it's the right thing to do. You can run the SGC as a civilian—she can't keep her job if she leaves the military."

"I know."

"She won't let you leave Jack—she won't let you quit if you ask her."

He knew he was right, he knew that Sam would leave herself rather than see him give it up…

Darkness had fallen as Sam pulled into Jack's drive way. Taking the key out the ignition she grabbed her bag out of the back seat and started for the front door. The front door swung open before she reached the step and Jack walked out into the grass to meet her—instantly taking her in his arms as soon as she was in reach. At first she was liking this "honey I'm home" scenario, but then she realized that Jack wasn't letting up—something was wrong.

"Jack? Are you alright?" She dropped her bag on the ground and wrapped both of her arms around him.

"NO—nothing's wrong." He still wasn't letting her go.

She pulled back and looked into his eyes—that same looked of pain was in them.

"Hey…" she said raising her hands to cup his face. "Hey…it's okay—I'm here." She knew there was something going on…something big. "Jack…what is it?"

"I uh—I…didn't know if you were…" He couldn't finish the sentence.

"You didn't know if I was coming back did you?" He was averting her gaze now, but she made him look back at her. "Pete is gone and I **_want_** to be here…with you."

She pulled him back into her arms and held him as he tightened his grip around her. After a moment he picked her up in his arms and started back for the house.

They were almost to the door when she remembered her bag.

"Jack…my bag—"

"You won't need it." He said kicking the door shut behind them—the giggles could be heard three houses away…


	4. reprecussions

The Road Not Taken…Repercussions

They had managed to hide from the world for two full weeks—on the last day Jack walked outside and picked up Sam's bag from the driveway.

Today was the day that had been lingering in the back of their minds—their first day back at the base. That morning they moved around Jack's house as though they'd been doing this for years. She made coffee--he tried to make breakfast—they ended up stopping at McDonalds on the way to the base.

Surprisingly they had made it the whole morning without incident—meaning that they had managed to keep their hands off each other.

It was almost lunch and Jack was in his office—part of his grand plan to stay out of trouble until his retirement was official. He'd never forget the look on Sam's face when he told her that he'd already put through his request for retirement…she was livid—then he kissed her and she forgot all about it, she came to see it his way. He made a mental note of this type of diversion for future notice.

He let himself think about it all for a moment. How he had actually spent the last two weeks with Samantha Carter in his arms and in his house—it was nice. And now that they were back at the base he had this nagging twinge in his chest—she was too far away…

He reminded himself that he'd see her at lunch. Granted Daniel and Teal'c would be there and touching, groping, kissing and staring would be prohibited--But he didn't care as long as he got to see her. He had been productive and responsible all morning and actually got some work done and was straightening up his desk—when the door opened.

He looked up and froze every muscle in his body—he even stopped breathing.

"Jonathan." His voice was solid and cut to the bone. The look in his eyes could have melted ice. Jack's first instinct was to run—run very fast in the opposite direction and maybe he stood a chance—he was a lot younger than him anyway, maybe he could make it.

"Sir." His was suddenly 16 years old—all he could thin was that if he called him Sir, maybe he wouldn't kill him.

He shut the door slowly and walked into the center of the room—then sat in the chair across from Jack and motioned for him to do the same.

"We need to have a talk young man." It was Jack O'Neill's worst nightmare—the one thing during all of this that he was not in any way looking forward to—the talk he was going to have with Jacob O'Neill—and it looked like it was going to happen right now.

In the commissary, Carter was watching the door like a hawk—Daniel couldn't help but notice she wasn't paying attention as he spoke.

"Hey Sam? Something wrong?" He knew full well what was going on—but figured that in the mixed company of the commissary he should play dumb.

"No, nothing wrong…why do you ask?" She was paranoid now.

"Oh, nothing—hey…did you see your dad this morning?"

"What?" Her jaw would have hit the floor if it weren't attached.

"Yeah—he came in around 5 this morning."

"And where is he now?"

"I don't know—said he had to talk to Jack and then he'd meet us here, I thought you knew." He took a bite of his burger with a look of innocence that boggled the mind. He knew exactly what he was doing—Jacob had told him to do it.

It felt as though Jacob had been staring at him for an hour—but by the clock it was only about 2 minutes.

"I don't have to tell you that if you ever—"

"Oh—no…believe me I know what you would do to me." Jack was over compensating for the start and felt the need to diffuse any concerns Jacob had right from the beginning.

"And I don't have to say that if I ever find out that—"

"I can assure you that it will never happen." He was cutting him off again, but he couldn't bring him self to actually hear what he'd do to him if he messed up.

"Cause if it does."

"Jacob—you trust me right?"

"With my life yes—my daughter is a different question. And don't think that I won't be around cause with Selmac-- I'm going to be around for a while--and I want grandchildren—is that understood?"

"Yes Sir—already working on that—" His eyes shot open and he froze. **_Did I really just say that?_**

"Jack!"

"Sorry." Maybe it was just better to listen and not talk.

He took a deep breath and stared at the ground for a moment. Then realized that he really only need to hear one thing from Jack O'Neill. "Promise me that you'll make her happy?"

"That has become my standing orders…as soon as my retirement papers are signed off on, the President is stalling—"

A moment passed and Jack was hoping that was the worst of it—he had expected to at least to limp out of the room.

"Lunch?" Jacob asked, standing and heading for the door.

"Sounds good."

Walking down the hall Jacob was starting to like the idea of jack and Sam…but he wasn't about to let him off that easy.

"You know I was kidding about the whole inflicting—"

"I figured."

"But not about the grandchildren—that I was serious about."

"So was I." Jack couldn't help but put that last little nudge in there.

"You know Jack—these pass few years we've been able to talk freely about anything and I like it—but now that your dating my daughter, I think there are certain things we shouldn't even mention—got me?"

"Loud and clear sir…loud and clear."


	5. The Dad perspective

Jacob made a point to walk out into the hall before Jack. But waited for him to walk at his side before reaching out and taking his shoulder. "You know I was kidding about the whole inflicting—"

Instinctively, Jack shoved his hands deep into his pockets as he looked over to Jacob—a classic Jack smirk on his face. "Yeah--I figured."

With the nod of his head he was walking back down the hall as he said, "But not about the grandchildren—that I was serious about."

Jack watched Jacob walk down the hall and smiled at his comment. He waited a moment until Jacob turned back to look at him and delivered his line perfectly. "So was I." Jack couldn't help but put that last little nudge in there.

The look on Jacob's face could have melted solid steel. He walked back to the younger man that he'd just assume as grab by the ear at that moment—he instead stopped short of running into Jack and leaned in close as he spoke so know one else passing in the hall could hear his words. "You know Jack—you're a good man, and I'd like to thin of you as a friend—but now that your dating my daughter, I think there are certain things we shouldn't feel free to discuss." His point was clear. The lift of his eyebrow before turning back down the hall way emphasized his meaning and Jack trailed after Jacob as he walked to the commissary.

"Now Jacob…don't get embarrassed..." he called down the hall as he jogged up to his side.

The commissary was all a buzz as the afternoon lunch rush hit full force. So when Jacob and Jack entered it was no surprise that Carter didn't see either of them until they were standing behind Daniel.

She was about to bite her cheeseburger when Jack caught her eye and she set the burger down and looked over to her dad. Having the two men stand side-by-side made all the blood rush to her face in a fraction of a second.

"Hey Honey." Jacob said as he took the seat next to Daniel.

"Hi dad." Her voice was louder and more excited that she had intended it to be and suddenly all attention was on her. With the wave of her hand Daniel and Teal'c dismissed her outburst and continued with their lunch.

"So, how's work?" Jacob asked over the noisy commissary. "Daniel says you got some new artifacts in the lab."

"Uhmm—yeah." She had to fight through her mind to retrieve the information on the artifacts she had been so excited about only an hour ago—at the moment she could only concentrate on the pair of eyes that were focused on her—the pair of dark smoldering eyes belonging to none other than Jack O'Neill. She stood abruptly from the table and took one last drink from her glass before pushing her seat in. The three men sitting at the table looked at her blankly. "I uhmm…have to get back to the lab—I told Lt. Banks that I would be back for the results on the Lanta artifacts." She was out the door before Daniel could say a word edge wise—and so was Jack O'Neill.

Jack walked down the hall and felt slightly off balance. It was still odd to be wearing civilian clothes while at work. His uniform had been a suit of armor through the years and now that it no longer kept him within himself he felt rebellious and couldn't help but walk with a bounce in his step as he neared the hiding place of one Samantha Carter. Her lab was dark as he pushed the door open and walked in. She would be in the far corner of the lab looking at something…_ah there she is._

He smiled as she came into view.

Hovering over something small on a table in the dark—she was trying to focus on the markings on the side.

He flipped the lights on and watched as she jumped two feet into the air from shock.

"Hi." He said simply as she whipped around and tried to cover her reaction.

"Hello Sir—Jack…" she was uncomfortable around him suddenly and she shook her head trying to rid her self of this sudden awkwardness that was pushing a mile between her and Jack.

He recognized the look in her eyes—he'd seen it numerous times through the years, only this time he was in a position to head her off. He crossed the room in two steps and pulled her in to his arms. She gave into his embrace and let her head rest on his chest as she released a deep breath.

"You okay?" He asked, running his fingers over her hair and down her neck as he tried to sooth her nerves.

"Uhmm…yeah I think so." She said through a shaky voice as she let her arms fall around his waist.

"Want me to fire someone?"

She laughed and shook her head into his shoulder. "No…"

"Need me to kill someone?"

She giggled this time and buried her face into his shoulder to stifle the noise. "No…"

He was happy just to have her laughing again and was content on holding her as long as she needed him to.

Jacob wanted to sprint down the hall but kept his feet from taking off as he walked towards his daughter's office. He didn't know why she had left so abruptly—but he felt responsible. He wanted to try and catch her in the hall but Daniel had insisted on prattling on about something he found the week before on P3X-982156. But now he was bound and determined to find out why his daughter was upset—and if Jack O'Neill was the cause, may the good lord be with him.

He stopped short of the door, noticing it stood open a few inches and the light in the back of the lab had been flipped on—but the front of the room still lay in shadows. He had come here with the intentions of busting in and prying into his daughters emotional state—but the scene that lay before him nearly took his breath away and calmed his fears for his daughters future.

It was the sign he had been waiting to see that would let him know they belonged together. It was so simple and yet complex at the same time. And in that moment he stood in the door way the world stopped turning as he watched his little girl in the arms of the man she loved—in the arms of the man that loved her.

The shadows of the room kept at bay as they stood in the dim light from the desk lamp. He watched as this man before him held his daughter in arms and traced the line of her back with his fingers. She had buried her face into his shoulder—had she been crying?

He watched still, unable to look away from them. It was as though they were dancing—even though no music played and their feet did not move. It was in the way he held her and moved his body around hers to pull her closer to his embrace. It was how her body—now seemingly a great deal smaller, fit into his frame as though two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle had found one another after a life time of searching and all they desired was the safety and comfort of the other.

This is what he needed to see. This moment, however intimate—even if he was intruding on their privacy—he needed to see them like this, he needed to know that this is how they loved each other and this is what lay in her future….

A soft smile creased his aging face and Jacob silently backed away from the door. He pulled the door shut without a sound and smiled once again at the couple inside—they were going to make it.


End file.
